


"Farewell" - The Rise of Skywalker

by jennyraylen



Series: Reylo [5]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Ben Solo Lives, F/M, Fix-It, Happy Ending, Movie: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, One Shot, Redeemed Ben Solo, Resurrection, Short One Shot, Songfic, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Fix-It
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:41:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24219043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jennyraylen/pseuds/jennyraylen
Summary: A short one-shot fix-it inspired by the track "Farewell" from the official soundtrack.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: Reylo [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1901710
Comments: 8
Kudos: 14





	"Farewell" - The Rise of Skywalker

**Author's Note:**

> This is meant to be read while listening to the track [Farewell](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBy3bnSyi6w) from The Rise of Skywalker soundtrack.

Rey gazed at the empty throne, her vision going double. She blinked, and for a moment, saw herself in dark robes on the throne with the man she loved, spread across the lap of the man who'd been killed by her grandfather, who himself was now dead at her own hands. The vision disappeared, only an illusion, merely a fantasy that would never come to fruition. He was gone, but her friends were safe now. They would live on to fight another day, and Rey found some little peace in that.

She stumbled, dropping Luke and Leia's lightsabers, and fell to the ground. The life faded from her, the last of her life Force used up in her final fight. It was over. She gazed out, and in her delirium, looked for her beloved in the throne room, as if he might still be there, waiting for her. But the room was empty. She would die alone, the hero of the galaxy. A single tear streaked down her cheek as the world went white.

0:46

A hand gripped the edge of a cliff. Ben groaned, struggling with heavy breath to complete the climb. He had felt the life fade from her, and yet he hadn't believed it until he saw her limp body splayed across the throne room floor. _No,_ he thought desperately. He mouthed her name, the word silent. His body ached with pain that nearly overwhelmed him, and yet he pushed past, desperate to reach her. If only he could get to her quick enough, then perhaps…perhaps...

He tripped, falling over rubble, and yet he continued. His broken leg screamed in agony, but he'd gotten this far. He would _not_ give up. She had saved him, and he would save her.

Finally, he reached her. Ben took Rey in his arms, favoring his hurt leg. He looked at those empty eyes, and unbidden tears welled in his own. It couldn't be possible. She'd been so full of life, so full of light, and now she was reduced to this limp form. This couldn't be the end--he refused to accept it. She deserved better. His Rey deserved the world.

Ben looked around for the ghosts who had helped her defeat the Emperor, but now they had abandoned her. He looked at her face one last time, taking in her beautiful, empty eyes, before pulling her close. _I'm sorry, I'm not enough. I never will be. But I can give you this._ Ben lowered her across his lap, pressing a hand to her stomach and breathed in.

2:05

He took in the Light, the precious Light he had forced out for so long, and gave the last life Force he had in him, praying it would be enough. _Please let it be enough. Give her a chance at a life I never had._ He didn't deserve his life anyway--it was best this way. He only hoped he could see her smile, those eyes full of life once more before he left this galaxy in her place.

A hand on his own. Ben gasped, his eyes opening wide. Rey opened her eyes, meeting his, and he stared at her in shock. She sat up, Ben supporting her, as he felt his life draining away by the moment. _I should be dead,_ he thought, but it was only an afterthought compared to the relief he felt at seeing her alive once more. Rey smiled at him, and Ben thought his heart would burst. It was so much more than he ever deserved, seeing her smile at him with those bright eyes. 

"Ben." He smiled, warmth filling him at his name. She took his cheek in her hand, that same cheek he'd felt his father touch as a child and before his death. There wasn't just happiness or gratitude in her smile as she looked in his eyes. There was love.

And then, she kissed him. Ben felt himself kissing back, his senses overloading in the same moment as the world began to fade, and he knew death was imminent. But this was enough. It was _more_ than enough. She was his everything.

Ben smiled, for the first time in his life feeling wanted, loved, and at home. _Rey is my home._ Death seemed so far, so impossible, compared to this feeling of joy and peace. Rey smiled back as she ended the kiss. The world spun, and Ben saw Rey's expression fall. _Sweetheart,_ he wanted to say, to comfort her, but the word did not come. He fell back and felt the embrace of the Force envelope him.

3:24

Rey gasped as Ben fell, horror filling her. He had saved her. Ben had brought her back to life, and this was how the Force repaid him--with a cruel, thankless death. A sob shook her, and she fell forward, burying her face in his shirt. "No," she whispered. "Come back to me." This couldn't be the end. "Be with me. Please." It felt like half of her soul had been ripped from her chest. In that one moment, she'd felt complete, like a piece of her that had been missing all her life had finally returned. Now it was gone forever.

She would have stayed there, sobbing over her love for eternity, had the glow of blue not caught her eye. Rey looked up and gasped.

There, all around, stood the ghosts of Jedi past, manifested before her. Luke, Leia, and so many others she did not recognize. She met Luke's eyes. He winked, smiling, and outstretched his hand. The other Jedi followed, and Ben's broken body began to glow.

3:55

Rey covered her mouth, leaning back as blue sparks of light surrounded Ben Solo and began to gather, manifested by the Force ghosts that surrounded them. The light seemed to lift him off the ground in a beam, healing his body and restoring his life.

Beams of blue light extended from his body, filling the room with their luminescence. Rey shielded her face from the light, staring as the light slowly faded, revealing the restored silhouette of the man she loved. His hair fell across his face as he turned. The light slowly faded, and the Force ghosts were gone. Ben opened his eyes. He looked at his hands as if seeing them for the first time.

Rey felt tears of joy brimming at her eyelids. She stood and ran toward her beloved, embracing him, burying her tear-stricken face in his chest. "Oh Ben!" she said, looking up into those deep brown eyes that smiled back at her.

"Rey." He put his hands around her waist and lifted her off the ground, spinning her through the air. He held her there and laughed, a deep, roaring laughed that filled the chamber. His eyes softened, and he lowered her to the ground, where she took his hands in her own and squeezed.

"I love you," Rey whispered. "More than anything in this world, Ben Solo. You are my belonging."

Ben cupped her cheek, and she leaned into the touch. "I know," he said softly, gently wiping away her tears. Everything was perfect in that moment of forever. They had found balance in one another. Peace. Love. A home. "You are my light." And he kissed her beneath the stars.


End file.
